The two Australian nominees were always outside chances at this year's Emmy Awards, but national pride and the patriotic love of an underdog gave us hope.

Sadly this was not to be the year for Nicole Kidman or Judy Davis as the favourites took the prize in both their respective categories, as the 2012 Emmy Awards were dominated by Modern Family, Homeland and (most crucially for local hopes) Game Change in the comedy, drama and mini-series or movie categories respectively.

Davis, who was nominated for the otherwise unrecognised Page Eight, watched Jessica Lange win outstanding performance by a supporting actress in a mini-series or movie for her role in American Horror Story, a full-length series that gave Lange a much larger canvas to work with.

Still Davis would be well-versed in Emmy practices, politics and etiquette having been nominated 11 times for an acting Emmy since 1982, winning three awards, most recently in the same category for The Starter Wife.

In the outstanding performance by an actress in a mini-series or movie category, Julianne Moore was always a likely winner for her extraordinary performance as Sarah Palin, however Kidman was seen as a legitimate challenger. Sadly the Hawaii-born Australian actress missed out in what was her first Emmy nomination.

Still Kidman will be in good company as she toasts the winners (or drowns her sorrows) at one of the multiple Emmy Awards after-parties this evening, as Hemingway & Gellhorn missed out in all five of the categories in which it was nominated. In total the series attracted 15 nominations, but only took the award in the sound editing and music composition categories.

Actually, coming to think about it, Claire Danes has spent a large amount of time in Australia, dating an Australian and had her breakthrough role with an Australian director.

So ... congratulations to Claire Danes on her Emmy Award for Homeland ... and her new-found status as a daughter of Australia.